From: MX%"Ken_Hill at RBGSYD.GOV.AU" 14-DEC-1994 21:00:42.54
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Subj: New "living fossil" find in Australia
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Reply-To: Ken Hill <Ken_Hill at RBGSYD.GOV.AU>
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From: Ken Hill <Ken_Hill at RBGSYD.GOV.AU>
Subject: New "living fossil" find in Australia
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To: Multiple recipients of list TAXACOM <TAXACOM at cmsa.Berkeley.EDU>
A small stand of trees that are considered to represent a third living
genus of Araucariaceae was discovered by New South Wales National
Parks and Wildlife officers in late 1994. This, now known as the
"Wollemi Pine", occurs in a deep, very wet and very sheltered gorge in
the Wollemi National Park, in a rugged mountainous area within 200 km
north-west of Sydney in eastern Australia. With only about 20 adult
trees in a single stand, it is one of the rarest trees in Australia.
Of the other extant Araucariaceae, it appears closest to Agathis, but
it has many features in common with Cretaceous and early Tertiary
fossil groups such as Araucarioides. Staff of the Royal Botanic
Gardens, Sydney, in conjunction with National Parks officers plan to
describe and name the new genus and species in 1995 in the journal
"Telopea". Studies of DNA and detailed morphology are also in progress
at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Sydney, together with investigation of
vegetative and tissue culture propagation. It is, however, unlikely
that plants will become available in less than two years
___________________________________________________________________
Ken Hill internet: ken at rbgsyd.gov.au
Senior Botanist voice: +61 2 231 8160
National Herbarium of NSW fax: +61 2 251 7231
Royal Botanic Gardens
Sydney NSW 2000, AUSTRALIA
___________________________________________________________________